Ordinary Love
by DopeyPixie
Summary: Morgan is in love. And... He's screwed. [[Sorry if a story like this has already been posted. I haven't read all the stories on here so don't know if this already exists.]]
1. You Really Got A Hold On Me

A/N: I'm guessing this is going to be a three-shot. I'll try to get the other chapters up as soon as I can, though they'll probably all be as short as this one.

Just a heads up, I haven't been able to follow season 9 of Criminal Minds due to some unfortunate circumstances so I don't know a thing about Sam and Savannah, who will both be featured in this story. Because of this they'll probably be completely out of character. I apologize in advance for this.

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**Chapter 1:**  
**You Really Got A Hold On Me**

* * *

''I am building a fire, and every day I train, I add more fuel. At just the right moment, I light the match.'' Mia Hamm

* * *

**2015**

* * *

Morgan had a tight grip on the steering wheel as he was driving down the road, maybe - probably - going way too fast.  
''Are you okay?'' He could hear Savannah ask and he looked over at her.  
He took a deep breath and started driving a bit slower, ''I'm just great,'' he told her.

''You've been acting strange all week, you sure nothing is bothering you?'' She asked him - pressing the issue a bit too much for his liking. When he didn't respond she pursed her lips, ''it seems to me that you started acting like this at pretty much the same time Garcia announced her engagement to Sam.''

Morgan looked away at the sound of that name, still paying attention to the road while at the same time trying to forget that they were going to the engagement celebratory dinner. ''Like I told you; it's nothing,'' Morgan told Savannah, clenching his jaw. He was a profiler, he knew it would give away how he really felt about the whole thing, but he couldn't help himself.

He had gotten along with Sam from the start; he had even gone on double dates with him and Garcia. But now they were engaged?! It was too soon... Okay, perhaps not a lot of people would say that a year was too soon, but to him it was.  
Knowing that she was going to marry another man truly marked the ending of their chapter together and he would get to watch her start the next chapter of her life with a man who wasn't good enough. And they had never even truly gotten their chapter, now that he thought about it.

If her life were a book, their chapter together wouldn't make it through the first round of editing.  
Okay, maybe that was a bit of an exaggeration, but that was how he felt about it.

He looked over at Savannah; she was glancing out the window. Morgan frowned at her, 'does she know I'm in love with Penelope?' He wondered.  
As the thought registered in his brain, his jaw dropped.

'I'm in love with Garcia,' he thought. He shifted in his driver's seat for a few seconds, trying to process that discovery.

'I am in love with her.'

It was all he could think, over and over again. He knew he loved her, that wasn't the issue. The leap from being in love with someone to loving someone usually wasn't that spectacular either, but for him it was in reverse and that changed everything.  
He had always known he loved her, he knew it a month - to the day - after they had first met.

Maybe a bit soon but that was the way their friendship worked. He hadn't been able to admit it out loud, to her, until four years later. And now, another seven years had passed and he was in love with her...  
Suddenly a lot of things made sense to him; the way he felt when he had been away on a long case and he saw her again, how happy he felt just simply being in her presence.

He had never felt that way with anyone before and though he hated to admit it, he didn't even feel that way with the woman he had been seeing for over a year, the woman who was currently sitting next to him in the car.

''What am I going to do?'' He quietly asked himself, feeling completely lost.  
Savannah looked over at him, ''what did you say?'' She asked him.  
Morgan shook his head, ''it's nothing.'' He replied.

'I'm so screwed.'

* * *

He couldn't believe how much one simple realization could change so much.

He had been staring at Garcia for what must've been forever, like he always did. And now he knows why he did that. The twinkle in her eyes when she smiled, the way she walked, the way she laughed... at _his_ jokes.  
The last part of that sentence pissed him off beyond belief.

His mother had always told him that when you're in love with somebody, everything they say makes you smile. He now guessed that that's why he always loved to hear her voice.  
Now seeing her talk to her boyfriend - excuse me, fiancée - and seeing her smile at every single word the man says...

Morgan knew how she felt about the man, though there was something about watching the whole thing that just didn't quite add up. It's as if you need a hundred points to look like a couple that's truly in love, and they only have ninety-nine.

He had always felt that something wasn't quite right whenever he saw them interacting with each other and he never could figure out what it was that bugged him so much.  
But now he knew... Sam didn't look at Penelope the way she deserved to be looked at. He didn't look madly in love with her. He looked happy to see her, happy to be around her. But in love? No.

The spark just didn't seem to be there.

If he had noticed it any other day before he would've attributed it to the dim lighting in the bar where they had gone after the dinner.  
But now, now he knew better. He knew what it looked like to look at her like a teenage boy who was madly in love with a girl who was too good for him. It wasn't the way Sam looked at her.

And it certainly wasn't the way he looked at Savannah either.

Their spark had been extinguished a long time ago, if it had been there at all. And Savannah, too, deserved better than that.

He watched her make her way back to the booth where he was currently sitting alone; all of the others had all either gone home or had started dancing. She slipped in next to him, cuddling with him for a second before pulling away.  
Seeing the indescribable look on her face he decided he had to do what he owed her - it was the absolute least he could do. Putting his arm around her he pulled her a little closer again, ''what's wrong?'' He asked, kissing her cheek.

She looked up at him and bit the inside of her cheek for a second, hesitating.  
''You're in love with her.'' She told him. It wasn't a question, there was no emotion - it was simply stating a fact. She had looked at him as she had said it and could see the barely noticeable change in his expression.

Morgan cleared his throat after a few seconds, suddenly feeling the need to have a drink, ''I can explain,'' he told her. He wasn't going to deny it, she could see right through that.  
Savannah shook her head, ''you don't have to explain. I just... -I can't believe I didn't see it sooner. I have been so blind!'' She said.

''Savannah, I-'' he began.  
She cut him off. Putting up her hand she shook her head, ''it's fine. It's just fine. I'm going home, I'll make sure all my stuff is gone in the morning,'' she said as she slipped out of the booth.

Morgan stared after her in shock. It didn't go the way he had expected. However, instead of rushing after Savannah to straighten the whole thing out, he just sat there. In shock. He took a sip of his drink and did the only thing he could; he, once again, started staring at a certain blonde goddess on the other side of the bar.

* * *

''Trouble in paradise?'' Garcia asked as she sat down next to Morgan in the booth, putting her drink down on the table.  
''You could say that,'' Morgan replied. ''Savannah and I are over.''

Garcia's shoulders slumped a bit, ''I'm sorry,'' she told him, putting an arm around him in a comforting way.

''It's okay, really.'' Morgan said, giving her a small smile. It was all he could muster at the moment. Savannah may not have been the girl he was in love with all along but they had been together for over a year and he would miss her friendship. ''I didn't even get a chance to congratulate you this week, I'm sorry. You know how our cases are...'' he began but didn't have to continue. She understood him perfectly - and not just because they worked together and she saw the cases as well.

''That's okay hot stuff. How about you and I go for a walk, just the two of us, and you can tell me all about what happened with Savannah,'' she suggested.  
The last thing Morgan felt like, was talking about the girl he had just broken up with. He was just about to decline the suggestion when he realized that it would give him alone time with his baby girl, something he couldn't pass up. It would give him a small timeframe in which he could pretend everything was the way it had always been.

He nodded at her and took his hand as they walked to the door.  
''You stealing my girl?'' Sam asked jokingly as he wrapped his arm around Garcia's waist.  
''We're just going for a little walk,'' Penelope told him.

''I get it,'' Sam said with a grin, ''my sweetheart needs some alone time with her best _friend_,'' he told them.  
Morgan grimaced a bit at the way the other man put the emphasis on the word 'friend'. Oh how he wished he could change that.

''We'll be right back,'' Penelope told Sam before leaning in to give Sam a quick peck on the lips.  
As they walked out the door it reminded Morgan of the way married couples on TV gave each other a quick peck when they left for work in the morning. It's not the way you're supposed to be kissing when you're celebrating your engagement.

It made him mad that Sam didn't treat Penelope the way he himself would have - but at the same time he wasn't sure that his heart would be able to take it if he saw them kiss like that.

''So what happened?'' Penelope asked as they walked down the street - ignoring all the people that came out of the bars drunk.  
''I guess it just wasn't meant to be,'' Morgan told her. ''She and I wanted different things.''

''What kind of different things?'' Penelope asked out of curiosity. She would completely understand if he didn't want to tell her, she respected his privacy as much as he respected hers.  
''From what she's been telling me these last couple of months; marriage, children, a white picket fence. That kind of thing,'' Morgan explained.

''And you?'' Penelope asked.  
Morgan stared at her as they continued walking, ''I want you.''

* * *

"I would love to say that you make me weak in the knees but to be quite upfront and completely truthful you make my body forget it has knees at all." Tyler Knott Gregson (Love Language)

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Please review.


	2. Chasing Love

As soon as I finished the first chapter I got sick, which backed up my whole schedule and is the reason why it has taken me so long to write this second chapter. I hope y'all don't mind.

Enjoy!

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**Chapter 2:**  
**Chasing Love**

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''But, what happens when she's your Juliet, but you're not her Romeo?''

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**2015**

* * *

They both stopped walking at the same time. Morgan had a smile on his face - glad to have the truth come out after all this time. Hearing the words being spoken had only made it more real and he was happy that now Garcia knew the truth. This would be the beginning of the rest of their lives. This would be the beginning of a relationship that would ultimately lead to getting married, having children and having their happily ever after.

Garcia licked her lips, ''you want me?'' She asked.  
''Yes, I do.'' Morgan replied, ''I want you for the rest of my life. It has taken me way too long to realize but on my way over here tonight it just came to me; I'm in love with you. I love you, I'm in love with you and I want to be with you.'' There was a moment of silence between them, Garcia was looking at him in shock and Morgan had no idea what to do. After a moment of hesitation he took a step towards her, leaning in and pressing his lips to hers.

Barely half a second passed before Garcia broke away from him, taking a step backwards. ''I'm with Sam,'' she told him, shaking her head. ''I can't leave him simply because you've suddenly come to the realization that you want to be with me.''  
''Baby girl,'' Morgan began.

''No! It's too late now. I waited years for my chance with you and I finally realized that it wasn't in the cards for us. I've moved on, and so should you. Sam and I are happy together and I'm not going to risk my relationship with him for one fling with you.'' Garcia told him. As they looked at each other Morgan could almost see the pity she had for him in her eyes. ''Don't get me wrong; I love you too and I still want to be friends with you. I wouldn't give up the way we tease each other for anything and I love our movie nights, but we can't be together.'' She said before turning on her heel and walking back to the bar.

* * *

Morgan rolled over with a groan; he couldn't even remember how much he had had to drink the night before. After his heart-breaking, soul-crushing conversation with Penelope he had gone to a club. He had gotten drunk like never before, taken home some girl whose name he didn't care to remember, had sex and passed out. He was happy he had been able to go to sleep without having every word Garcia had spoken to him replaying in his head, but it made everything come back even stronger now.

He sighed as he could feel the girl snuggle up to him while she slept. He glanced over his shoulder at her - in the right light she might have even looked like Penelope, even if it was just for the blonde hair. As he got up out of bed and did his morning routine, everything seemed to move slower than it normally did. His mind was occupied with remembering the good times he had had with _her._ It could not just simply be over. Whatever they had, it could not be over. There had to be something he could do... anything.

In his mind he went over everything he could possibly do to make her see that he was truly, madly, deeply in love with her. As he was stirring his coffee he could hear the girl he'd slept with come downstairs. ''Morning,'' she said with a satisfied smile as she looked him up and down.  
''Morning,'' he replied. ''Do you want some coffee?''

She nodded at him before sitting down. ''So who's Penelope?'' She asked.  
Morgan nearly choked on his coffee at that question, ''what?'' He asked as he turned around to look at... Dana? He wasn't sure what her name was.  
''Who is Penelope?'' The girl asked again, standing up from the chair. ''I heard you moaning her name over and over again last night, I'm just curious.''

''She's the girl who rejected me last night, right before I met you,'' Morgan told her.  
''And I'm guessing she's not like me? Not a girl you'd intended to take home and spent one night with, only to never call again?''  
Morgan looked at her for a second, ''what makes you think I'm never going to call you again?''

The girl smiled, ''what's my name?'' She asked him, making her point.  
He hesitated for a moment, ''Dana, right?'' He was pretty sure that was her name.  
''It's Amber,'' she told him. Cocking her head to the side she smiled, ''now tell me about Penelope. Maybe I can give you some advice.''

* * *

As Morgan stepped out of his car, fresh and early for work, he saw Penelope heading to the front door of the building as well. ''Garcia!'' He said, chasing after her and holding the door open for her. They both walked to and got on the elevator in silence.  
''Is this going to be the moment when you apologize for everything that you said last Friday?'' Penelope asked as she stole a quick glance at him.

Morgan looked over at her, ''sort of. This is going to be when I tell you that I am sorry if what I said made you uncomfortable. I know that you and Sam were just trying to celebrate your engagement and it wasn't the moment for me to reveal my feelings for you. So yes, I'm sorry that I chose the worst possible moment. But I am not sorry about how I feel for you, since it's not something I can change.'' He told her.  
Penelope sighed, ''you only feel this way because you can no longer have me all to yourself,'' she told him, knowing that it sounded a bit harsh.

''You think that that's all this is?'' Morgan asked her in disbelief. ''Baby girl, I have been crazy about you since the moment I met you. Ever since I first laid eyes on you I knew that you were the one for me and that we were going to end up together one day. But I wasn't ready to settle down and I didn't think you were either - we were too young for that. So I waited, and waited, and we became friends and even while we were seeing other people I still knew that all those other women would never be _the one_ \- since you were the only woman who has ever held that place in my heart. It wasn't until we were driving to the party last Friday that I realized that I was going to lose you... That you were going to marry someone that wasn't me. And I knew that I couldn't let that happen and so I told you,'' Morgan ranted.

''I didn't tell you that I love you because I'm worried that you being with Sam will threaten our friendship and I'm going to miss our teasing when you're married to him, I told you because I want to spend the rest of my life loving you. I want to see you become the mother of my children and I want to grow old together.'' He could see the tears forming in Garcia's eyes and he wiped one falling one away with his thumb.

''It doesn't work like this,'' she told him. ''You cannot just come to me and tell me all these feelings and expect me to just leave Sam and be with you.'' She repeated her words from the Friday before.  
''Why not?'' Morgan asked, ''it's your life, you make the rules.''

As they got to their floor the doors opened, ''we can't happen because life isn't a fairytale - girls like me don't end up with guys like you,'' she told him before walking off, leaving him stunned.

* * *

Morgan ran a hand over his head as he made his way down to Garcia's lair, he didn't know what to tell her and in all honesty was shocked at what she had told him. He softly knocked on the door and after hearing her tell him that it was open, walked in and closed the door behind him. He would've stopped by her office and talked to her sooner if it hadn't been for a meeting. ''Baby girl,'' he said as he leaned against the door. She turned around in her chair and they stared at each other for a few moments. ''What did you mean by what you said this morning?'' Morgan asked. ''_Girls like me don't end up with guys like you_.'' He repeated what she said.

Penelope shrugged, ''it's just the way things are. You're not supposed to date people that aren't within your league.''  
''Who cares about leagues or whatever, the heart wants what the heart wants and my heart wants you,'' he told her. She scoffed and he looked at her surprised, ''is that so hard to believe?''  
''Morgan, I've seen the girls you've taken home in the past. They don't exactly look anything like me,'' she told him. ''Your heart clearly doesn't want me or anyone like me, so don't pretend that you do.''

Morgan took a step towards her, ''why in the world would I lie? Why would I pretend that I want you if I didn't? The reason I'm telling you all that I'm feeling is because I thought you should know. You should know that I want to marry you so you can chose to be with me if that's what you want.''  
''I've made it clear over and over again that Sam and I are happy together. So what makes you think that I want to be with you?'' She asked him as she stood up from her chair, getting in his face.

''If you didn't want to be with me than you wouldn't be talking about leagues and who people are _supposed_ to end up with...'' he told her, looking deep into her eyes. After a few seconds he leaned in and softly pressed his lips against hers - the soft kiss quickly turned into a heated one and it wasn't until a few minutes later that they both pulled away from air. Morgan rested his forehead against hers and bit his lip, ''do you believe me now?'' He asked her with a grin.

''Almost,'' she told him as she gave him a small smile. She hesitated for a moment before finally asking him, ''after we had that conversation last Friday, what did you do?'' She asked him.  
He pulled back and looked at her, ''what?''

''A man who is madly in love with a girl - the way you say you feel about me - doesn't go off and find another girl to spend the night with when the girl he's in love with rejects him. If you're as in love with me as you say you are, than you didn't go look for another girl,'' she told him. ''So did you or didn't you?'' Morgan simply stared at her for a few seconds before looking down at his shoes. Garcia swallowed hard, ''that's what I thought,'' she told him even though it hurt. ''I think you should leave now.'' She said.

* * *

''I'm just not built for fairytale surprises.'' Karen Tayleur, _Love Notes From Vinegar House_

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Please review!


	3. You Suck (8 Hours In The Story Of Love)

A short last chapter. I hope everybody enjoyed this short story!

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**Chapter 3:**  
**You Suck (8 Hours In The Story Of Love)**

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''If I could give you one thing in my life I would give you the ability to see yourself through my eyes. Only then would you realize how special you are to me.''

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**2016**

* * *

''Handsome, we've been over and over this,'' Garcia told him, ''Sam and I are getting married this afternoon. What makes you think that today of all days I'm suddenly going to decide to leave him for you?''  
''Hope,'' was his simply answer as they came to a halt in front of her lair. ''What are you doing here anyway, if you are getting married this afternoon?''

''I just left some stuff here that I need to have with me, since I do have a little while off for my honeymoon and somebody else will be working here in the meantime,'' she told him. ''What are you doing here? You will be there in time for the wedding, right?''  
Morgan took a deep breath, ''about that-'' he began, before she interrupted him.

''You are coming aren't you?'' She asked him, ''D, I need you there!'' She told him.  
''I think you've made it pretty clear over time that you don't need me,'' he told her even though it hurt.

''Derek,'' she said, sounding upset.  
Morgan simply looked at her; it was rare that he heard her say his name but it sounded nice. ''Penelope,'' he replied.  
''Is this because I am marrying _Sam_?'' She asked, with the emphasis on her soon-to-be husband's name.

''No,'' he replied. ''It's because it's painful to see you with another guy.'' He said honestly. ''Any other guy, not specifically Sam, I'm sure he's a great guy.'' It sounded a bit sarcastic.  
Penelope chose to ignore this, ''I've made my decision,'' she reminded him. ''Plus, I've seen what you're like with girls - you're not exactly the marrying kind.''

''I'd marry you right this second if you'd let me,'' he told her.  
She grinned at him seductively, ever the tease, ''and why would_ I_ want to marry _you_?'' She asked him.

'Well,'' he began. ''You see, the thing about life is that one day you'll be dead. And you'll regret the things you didn't more than the things you did. I can fire off a bunch more clichés but I think you get the gist.'' Morgan told her, being more serious than her.  
''So you think that when I am on my deathbed I'll regret not marrying you?'' She asked him as she pushed open the door to her office.  
''I hope not. I hope that you'll marry me at some point so you won't have to regret it,'' he told her with a smile - albeit one with sad undertone.

He knew that even though she had vocally rejected him over and over again, her body language was telling a different story. It may not have been much, but it was enough to pin his hopes on.

* * *

''Are you ready kitten?'' Rossi asked as he closed the door to the bridal dressing room behind him - giving him and Garcia a moment of privacy.  
She nodded as she secured a small piece of her veil on her head. The top of it consisted of bright flowers and though it was beautiful she couldn't stop worrying that it might fall off.

''Sam_ is_ here, isn't he?'' She asked nervously.  
''He's waiting for you at the end of the aisle,'' Rossi told her. ''It's okay, he's nervous too,'' he told her with a wink.  
''It is normal to be this nervous though, right?'' She asked him as she felt slightly sick to her stomach.

''Speaking from experience, yes,'' he told her. ''Are you ready?'' He asked her, holding his hand out to her.  
One short moment of hesitation later she took his hand, ''yes.'' She told him in a determined voice.

As they made their way down to the hall where the actual ceremony was going to be, Garcia grew increasingly nervous.  
When she had imagined this day she figured Morgan was going to be there - not as the groom, but there. There by her side, to walk her down the aisle even maybe. It was hard to believe that her best friend would miss this, even if it might be for the better.

''You ready?'' Rossi asked and she nodded as they stopped in front of the big doors which led to the hall. ''You have your vows?'' He asked.  
''JJ has them,'' she told him, JJ was her maid of honor. As she rechecked everything again in her head, Rossi waited patiently for JJ and Emily to come out and walk down the aisle first. Hearing a familiar ringtone, Penelope looked up. ''Is that my phone?'' She asked him, thankful for the distraction as she saw the girls approaching in the corner of her eye.

Rossi patted one of his pockets, ''I have your phone with me, could you put it on silent?'' He asked her as he handed it to her.  
She quickly put in her password and unlocked it, seeing a new message - from Derek of all people. She frowned as she opened it. '_I'm sorry I'm not there. I love you_'. It simply read.

If Penelope didn't feel conflicted before, this certainly did it. She had felt nervous because she was getting married; now she was nervous because she was marrying Sam.  
Rossi noticed the expression on her face, ''are you okay, kitten?'' He asked her concerned.

JJ and Emily looked over as well, ''you ready?'' They asked her, trying not to sound like they were rushing her.  
''It's now or never,'' Penelope told them, looking up from her phone and handing it back to Rossi.

She watched Emily disappear through the doors first, than JJ. Hearing the music change to Here Comes The Bride she took in a nervous breath but remained where she was.

''Kitten?'' She heard Rossi ask.  
''What am I doing?'' She asked him as she looked up, feeling completely lost.

* * *

She watched as the door swung open, ''sometimes I really hate you, you know that?'' She asked him, tears in her eyes and her dress a mess.  
''Baby girl?'' Morgan asked concerned as he looked at her standing on his front doorstep. He glanced down at his watch real quick and realized there was no way that she had gotten married and _then_ come to his house.

''I was perfectly happy marrying a perfectly fine guy, and then you came in and you... You messed it up.'' She told him. ''You started telling me all the right things at all the right times,'' she said, ''why?!''  
Morgan had to think about this for a second, ''all really is fair in love and war, I guess,'' he told her. ''I just want what's best for you and... And I want you. I want to kiss you, I want to hold you and forty or even fifty years from now, I'll still want that. I have always loved you and I will always love you.''

Garcia stared at him for a moment, ''you suck.'' She told him. ''You should have told me all of this when we were both still single. That way I wouldn't have had to leave a wonderful guy at the altar for you,'' she said.  
Remembering her constant reminding him that she had chosen Sam over him, Morgan hesitated to ask the next question, ''why did you?''

She couldn't even bring herself to care even more about her running mascara, ''because I love you too,'' she told him. ''And I started thinking about what you told me; that one day I'd regret not marrying you. It hurt because I could actually imagine that happening to me, right before I realized that if I married you, I couldn't imagine ever wishing I had married somebody else instead.''

''Does that mean that if I asked you to marry me right now, that you'd say yes?'' Morgan asked her, taking a step towards her.

* * *

''Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage.''

* * *

**The End!**

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Please review! It's kind of an open ending but I think we all know what she answered :-)


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